About Me
Like any kid I would play with metal nails and hammers. When I read of wooden nails in RL Stevenson’s Treasure Island, I was fascinated. If I could I make a nail from wood, then I really would be independent.
Doing the least processing to naturally-occurring materials for the greatest return has fascinated me ever since. So when I saw Mike Abbott at a pole-lathe in 1987, I was hooked by green woodwork. I attended his courses and began to understand the coppice cycle. Hired by Hillingdon Council, I made their coppice-management program viable by engaging contractors who paid to fell and remove timber rather than got paid to just fell and stack it to then rot.
Although I qualified as an accountant, my passion is to share people-powered skills and processes that build confidence, resilience and fun.
I created the idea of courses before the annual Bodgers Ball and ran them in 2015, 2016 and 2017. I like organising woody-learning.
From 2007 to 2016 I ran a monthly woodworking club and delivered services to NHS which taught me much about which projects work and which don’t.
I run Sawfest every two years or so and occasional bread-baking events.